2014 Asian Champions League

[shinAUFC]

I thought victory were quality last night and clearly the afc gods did nit want 2 aussie sides in the next round

[Stuckey]

WSW only the second side after AU to top their group. Well done to them. Just goes to show if you sign decent players to play ACL and take the tournament seriously it can work.

[Stuckey]

Round of 16 games start tonight.
Al-Ittihad vs Al-Shabab
Al-Jazira vs Al-Ain
Al-Sadd vs Foolad
Bunyodkor vs Al-Hilal
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors vs Pohang Steelers
Cerezo Osaka vs Guangzhou Evergrande
Kawasaki Frontale vs FC Seoul
Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs Western Sydney Wanderers

This time round the round of 16 will be a two leg affair, previously it was a once off game.
The only game Sanfrecce lost in the group stage was against Central Coast so hopefully that bodes well for WSW. It would have been nice to see a country besides China, Japan and South Korea make the knock out stage. Not really sure who I would like to succeed if WSW get knocked out. Maybe Guangzhou since I think if they win it they would have a great chance of doing Asia proud in the Club World Cup. An Asian Club World Cup winner would be an amazing achievement for the confederation and something that will make a number of people take note.

[shinAUFC]

why do they keep changing the format every year ?

The competition loses credibility because one season coming 2nd in your group or losing at home in the round of 16 means your out, the next season it means you live to fight another day.

Sure sometimes a change in structure is warranted but every season there are massive changes which drastically effect who will be in the final

[mcjules]

The biggest change is splitting East and West all the way to the final. That needs to change back.

[blahblah]

The biggest change is splitting East and West all the way to the final. That needs to change back.

Agreed. I think it was primarily put in to give the West Asian clubs a better chance.

[Stuckey]

I missed the first goal but that second was pure class.

Love seeing the way Sanfreece are drawing WSW towards their defence then slicing them open with some quality passing. Fans of the hoof and hope can get stuffed when football like this is on offer.

[Stuckey]

It ends 3-1 a Covic error from a free kick gives them their third and considering how soft the penalty was and Covic whinging like a stark pig after the GF is a fair thing to happen.

It makes next weeks match for the tough but not impossible. Especially considering this result if on the back of playing a 120 minute Grand Final on Sunday. Now they have a week to recover.

[EdDog]

WSW will have to go out all guns blazing next week. Shouldn't be too much of a problem for the Kings of Asia

I'm disappointed with the new round of 16 rule change. Topping your group should be an advantage - a home knockout game against 2nd place from another group.

The 2 legs essentially levels the playing field which shouldn't happen until the QF where all the teams have won through IMO.

[Stuckey]

WSW will have to go out all guns blazing next week. Shouldn't be too much of a problem for the Kings of Asia

I'm disappointed with the new round of 16 rule change. Topping your group should be an advantage - a home knockout game against 2nd place from another group.

The 2 legs essentially levels the playing field which shouldn't happen until the QF where all the teams have won through IMO.

They have home and away legs in the UEFA champions league so I have no problem with them bringing it in to the ACL. But I agree the splitting of East and West at the pointy end of the tournament is bollocks and stinks for trying to get a West nation thru to the final.....finally!
I can understand it as the logistics of it are far greater then UEFA but I very much doubt if the West were winning the ACL more regularly it wouldn't be an issue!

[Stuckey]

Al-Ittihad vs Al-Shabab 1-0
Al-Jazira vs Al-Ain 1-2
Al-Sadd vs Foolad 0-0
Bunyodkor vs Al-Hilal 0-1
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors vs Pohang Steelers 1-2
Cerezo Osaka vs Guangzhou Evergrande 1-5
Kawasaki Frontale vs FC Seoul 2-3
Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs Western Sydney Wanderers 3-1
Wow massive result for Guangzhou.
I feel considering WSW have hit 5 already in an ACL match they won't feel they the tie is dead and considering they now don't have any more games till then next R16 match on May 14th. Sanfreece have another league game on the 10th.

[EdDog]

WSW through on aggregate 3-3 with the away goal after winning 2-0 last night in Parramatta.

Only caught the highlights but looked like an entertaining game with several goalmouth scrambles at both ends.

Only the second A-League team through to the QF.

This is where it gets tough though as I think the QF is around September? Which is deep in off-season and compounded by player movements.

Will be interesting to see how they go.

[blahblah]

This is where it gets tough though as I think the QF is around September? Which is deep in off-season and compounded by player movements.

Will be interesting to see how they go.

Indeed. It will be nice for another A-League club to be infused with enthusiasm for the ACL.

[Stuckey]

Al-Ittihad vs Al-Shabab 4-1
Al-Jazira vs Al-Ain 2-4
Al-Sadd vs Foolad 2-2 (away goals)
Bunyodkor vs Al-Hilal 0-4
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors vs Pohang Steelers 1-3
Cerezo Osaka vs Guangzhou Evergrande 2-5
Kawasaki Frontale vs FC Seoul 4-4 (away goals)
Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs Western Sydney Wanderers 3-3 (away goals)

So the sides in bold are through. The draw for the next round and I think that will shape the rest of the tournament (as in the path to the final and where the final legs are played) is on May 28th. As mentioned the East and West clubs are separated till the final which BTW is a 2 legged affair. The QF legs will be played on the 20th and 27th of August. I'm sure many will say how tough it will be for WSW going in to such a big game during the pre-season but as per usual AU showed it can be done.

[ChillyPhilly]

A two-legged final is so lame. It isn't even a true 'final' in one sense of the word.